Crystal cove always delights me. Today was no exception. It is the weekend of king tide and the state park is hosting several tours of the creature inhabited pools of water that are only viably viewable during this weekend that features the lowest tides of the year. We parked at Los Troncos parking lot $5 per hour, met a park ranger and walked to the ocean to view the pools of water. This is a decent hike (less than a mile) with a good descent (maybe 250') on paved and packed sand trail (still intact although significantly eroded by this month's rain) to the beach. From there we walked a hundred yards or so to the waters edge across the firmly packed sand from the hours old (now receded) high tide (the ocean had come up to the steps of the buildings.) We ranged all over the rocky terrain peering into an undersea world we humans don't often see. It was sunny but chilly and while we were wearing beach shoes (neoprene on top with rubber soles for good traction on the bottom) and 3/4 length pants so we could get our feet wet we found ourselves avoiding the cold ocean water when possible.
Scrambling (slowly) over the rocks and sand at the ocean's edge, the park rangers pointed out an octopus, sea stars, snails, slugs, mermaid hair, sand worm colonies and more. It was a lovely day at the ocean.
The beach at this part of Crystal Cove is quite picturesque with the beach cottages, the visitor center, public bathrooms, and two restaurants. There are a decent amount of amenities here and such incredible natural beauty that I highly recommend a visit any time but a king tide is a special treat.